Solar Power

With no moving parts and an expected lifespan of 25 years, solar energy is a reliable and low maintenance form of energy generation well suited to the planning restrictions of urban areas. A grid connect solar system is a relatively cheap and easy way of securing your own energy supply and protecting you from rapidly rising energy prices.

Solar energy systems, also known as solar photovoltaic or PV systems, produce electricity from sunlight. Solar panels should ideally be oriented North, with a tilt of between 18 and 35 degrees and can be fitted to virtually any type of roof or mounted on ground based racking.

Government Rebates and Support

Each new solar energy system is entitled to a number of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), depending on the size of the system. These RECs have a value that varies throughout the year, depending on the REC spot market price. When we provide you with a quote we will tell you how many certificates your system is entitled to and the current price of the certificates. This will be the amount of your rebate. You have the option to take this rebate as a point of sale discount or you can choose to keep the renewable energy certificates and sell them at a later date when the market price is higher.

The energy that you produce is measured through a smart meter. If you produce more than you use over a 24 hour period then you will receive money from your electricity company (Renewable Energy Buyback Scheme (REBs). At present this amounts to 7c per kwH.

How Much Do I Need?

The size of the system that you need to cover your electricity use depends on the amount of electricity that you use. Your electricity bills normally show your average daily electricity use for the billing period (normally a two month period). This is shown as units and these units refer to the number of kWhs. If you get your last six bills you can find your average daily electricity use over the year. A single bill is not normally a good basis for performing this calculation as energy use tends to vary throughout the year depending on your use of heating, cooling and other appliances such as pool and bore pumps.

Each kW of solar produces approximately 5.5 units (kWhs) of solar per day, averaged over the year. If you divide your average daily electricity use by 5.5. you will be able to determine the size of system you would need to cover your energy use. Obviously you can have a larger or smaller system if you wish but this gives you a starting point when considering system size.

What Do I Do Now?

The next step is to call or click on the Quote Request button above to arrange a free quote.

This involves us coming to the premises to discuss your bills and system requirements, measure the available roof space, inspect the switchboard for space and discuss preferred positioning of the inverter. This visit enables us to accurately assess the difficulty of installing a system at your home and determine the best system size to meet your requirements and will enable us to give you an accurate and firm quote. This is also an opportunity for you to ask any questions that you have about systems, rebates and how things work.

The quote that we send you will include the total system purchase price, the value of the rebate that the system will receive and your out of pocket costs (purchase price less rebate). The quote will also include an estimate of system output and details of the equipment that will be supplied along with data sheets for the inverter and panels. The quote will also specify what is included. Normally our quotes include all equipment and installation costs, unless otherwise agreed. The only costs not generally included in our quotes are your electricity retailer’s charges for replacing or updating your existing meter and the cost of applying to join the Renewable Energy Buyback Scheme. An indication of these costs, normally in the region of $110 to $210, will be included in the quote but for exact costs you should contact your electricity retailer (Synergy or Horizon).

Once you have received your quote we will contact you to check if you need any further information.

If you choose to go ahead with the installation of a system then you complete and sign our order form and pay a deposit equal to 35% of the total purchase price. We will then apply for Western Power approval to install a system. On receipt of approval from Western Power we will contact you to arrange an installation date. Prior to installation we will request payment of the remaining amount, less a $500 completion payment. We aim to have the system installed within two weeks of receipt of Western Power approval, however installation will not commence until all invoices have been paid.

Warranties

Different suppliers have different warranties and these are detailed in the data sheets that we will provide with the quote. If any warranty issue should arise we recommend that you first contact us so that we can assist you in resolving any issues.